Pregnancy Update

Originally posted December 24, 2008

I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for the overwhelming response of thoughts, encouragement, and most importantly prayer that we have received from all of you when we told you about our baby's heart. The morning after our sonogram was one of my lowest and darkest times ever, but when I turned on my computer and logged on to facebook that morning I just cried with thanksgiving as God lavished mercy and love on me through my friends and spiritual family on facebook. So thanks so much for all your continuing prayers, thoughts, and words of encouragement. They are precious to both me and David.
My doctor called yesterday, just to check on me (talk about outstanding bedside manner! I love that woman!). She said that she spoke personally with the first doctor that performed my sonogram last week (not the fetal cardiac specialist). This doctor had conferred with the cardiac specialist and they decided that pericardial effusion is pretty substantial, serious, and is our major concern right now. Pericardial effusion is when fluid leaks out from the heart and into the pericardial sac. This is very dangerous because if the fluid level becomes to great, the pressure of the fluid could crush the baby's heart, causing it to stop beating and the baby to die. If he was outside the womb, my understanding is that the doctors could drain the fluid, but they are not able to do this in the womb. So we have to wait, pray, and get lots of sonograms to monitor the fluid level around the heart (as well as wait expectantly for God, the great physician, to fix the valve in his tiny little heart). My next sonogram is on Monday, Jan. 5th. I have an appointment with my regular OB a week before that to check the heartbeat.
On a happy note, I'm about 90% sure that I felt the baby move for the first time last night. That confirmation of life was such a relief and was the best Christmas present I could have asked for!
Thank you all again for the encouraging messages and the prayers. Please continually pray for our son, and for his mommy and daddy that we will be strong enough and have enough faith to get through whatever is to come.

Blessings to all of you, and Merry Christmas.